Recommend me a good fiction book
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Shinz Kicker
Banned
was anasi boys any good i almost got to see gaiman read the first chapter at a towny book store when it first came out but i never read it.
im gonna throw sherlock holmes into this.
im gonna throw sherlock holmes into this.
(Shh... He considers himself American and that's good enough for me!)Tamanon said:To be fair, is it American literature if written by a Brit?
Anansi Boys was very good. From a pure storytelling perspective, I'd say it's better than American Gods. But I'll always prefer American Gods' norse references over Anansi Boys' more humanistic characters.
thetrin
Hail, peons, for I have come as ambassador from the great and bountiful Blueberry Butt Explosion
Halycon said:
Well, I'm moving back to the states in April, so that counts for something perhaps. :3
Btw, I would just like to say that I'm pleasantly surprised that there are this many gaffers that actually read books.
WHOAguitarninja
Member
Currently reading The Raw Shark Texts. It's pretty fun, and is great at keeping you engaged without boring stretches. I'm 250 pages deep and it's been pretty much nonstop fun. Kinda weird though and probably won't be everyone's bag.
akachan ningen
Member
Any fiction by Kurt Vonnegut is good.
WHOAguitarninja
Member
Just finished The Raw Shark texts so I came back here for some tips. Ended up buying Pandora Star, American Gods, Only Revolutions, and Dragon Age:The Stolen Throne. Has anyone read the Dragon Age book? If so, how was it? I'm not really a fantasy reader, so I'm not going to even be able to put it next to the greats, so I hope that works to my advantage in terms of enjoyment.
Mike Works
Member
Grimus - Salman Rushdie
SpeedySwaf
Member
House of Leaves
WHOAguitarninja
Member
SpeedySwaf said:
Absolutely adore this book, but it doesn't strike me as the type to pick up at the bookstore and read on a whim because your date canceled.
I recently picked up The Book of Lost Things and The Forever War after seeing them talked about in the last GAF 'what are you reading' thread.
About five chapters in to each one. Good stuff.
Here:
http://www.thebookoflostthings.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Forever_War
About five chapters in to each one. Good stuff.
Here:
http://www.thebookoflostthings.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Forever_War
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
I came in to post the last novel I read, The Road, only to see my two favorite novels also posted-- Lolita and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. Go get 'em all!
GallonOMilk
Member
Several people have already mentioned World War Z, but it's worth another mention. I just read it and it's amazing. It's very well written and very interesting, it'll keep you hooked throughout the book. Plus, it throws a realistic tone onto the topic of zombies, something you wouldn't necessarily expect. In fact, the focus is barely on the 'zombies' themselves, but rather on the people who survived it and the personal struggles they all went through, in all parts of the world and in many different positions (soldiers, government officials, refugees, various migrant groups, civilians from different parts of the world, etc.). But I'm just going on and on. It's a really great book, pick it up.
my name is ed
Banned
Seeing so much Vonnegut and Gaiman love in here warms my heart.
Lolita is extremely well written. Read that.
Never heard of World War Z. Ill check it out at some point.
Lolita is extremely well written. Read that.
Never heard of World War Z. Ill check it out at some point.
FateBreaker
Member
I am an English major, and after reading tons and tons of books, I still think American Gods is just amazing. I'm happy to see all the love for it in here. 
Used to be my favorite book ever. Awww...*loves his signed copy*
But now that goes to The Picture of Dorian Gray. It is not the easiest of reads, I guess, but it is packed with some thought-provoking stuff. It's a classic.
The Things They Carried is also incredible. While it seems like non-fiction, the author specifically states it as fiction...though he has his name as the main character. Truly interesting read.
We is an EXCELLENT sci-fi novel, if you're leaning towards that genre.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is the funniest book possibly ever, so there's that option, but that is indeed non-fiction. The Pratchet selections in here sound great for fiction.
Yep, those were just at the top of my head. I just read Song of Solomon, which is really interesting too, but it is not that lite.
EDIT: Oh Jesus, how could I forget one of my all-time favorites: The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Insightful, lots of things to relate to...hilarious...and is similar to Catcher in the Rye, if you liked that (and if you didn't, shame on you).
Used to be my favorite book ever. Awww...*loves his signed copy*But now that goes to The Picture of Dorian Gray. It is not the easiest of reads, I guess, but it is packed with some thought-provoking stuff. It's a classic.
The Things They Carried is also incredible. While it seems like non-fiction, the author specifically states it as fiction...though he has his name as the main character. Truly interesting read.
We is an EXCELLENT sci-fi novel, if you're leaning towards that genre.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is the funniest book possibly ever, so there's that option, but that is indeed non-fiction. The Pratchet selections in here sound great for fiction.
Yep, those were just at the top of my head. I just read Song of Solomon, which is really interesting too, but it is not that lite.
EDIT: Oh Jesus, how could I forget one of my all-time favorites: The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Insightful, lots of things to relate to...hilarious...and is similar to Catcher in the Rye, if you liked that (and if you didn't, shame on you).
StriKeVillain
Banned
Picked up Good Omens over the weekend due to the recommendations in here. Very good so far!
ElectricBlue187
Member
flintstryker
Banned
The Walking Drum By Louis L'amour.
viciouskillersquirrel
Member
The scene where Aziraphale and Crowley meetstriKeVillain! said:
Anathema
Ubik is a fine read. PKD goodness.
Also good: House of Leaves, Slaughterhous-Five, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
H.P. Lovecraft stories are also fun to read.
Then there's Jorge Luis Borges who is blow your f-ing brains out brilliant. If you want something really metaphysical, pick up one of his short story collections, you won't be sorry. SAMPLE: http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~jatill/175/CircularRuins.htm
Also good: House of Leaves, Slaughterhous-Five, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
H.P. Lovecraft stories are also fun to read.
Then there's Jorge Luis Borges who is blow your f-ing brains out brilliant. If you want something really metaphysical, pick up one of his short story collections, you won't be sorry. SAMPLE: http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~jatill/175/CircularRuins.htm
Night_Trekker
Member
killertofu said:No one's mentioned the Road yet? I'm disapointed.
Amazing piece of literature.
Just checking to see if someone mentioned it. Thank you
WHOAguitarninja said:
Yeah, that's putting it mildly :lol
Tim the Wiz
Banned
Most other genres are covered, so I'll have to beat the historical fiction drum:
Outside that, I'd recommend Leon Tolstoy's War & Peace (if you don't read everything else of his afterward then there's something wrong with you) or anything by Jorge Luis Borges. And if you feel like a change of pace from the serious, give Wodehouse (the Jeeves stories first) a twirl. Yeah, just realized, I don't read much American fiction outside of fantasy.
Going to have to agree. I'd understand if you wouldn't consider Stephenson to have the level of prose that Dick has, but Snow Crash remains an enjoyable read.
- Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series
- Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles and House of Niccolò series
- Alexandre Dumas' Count of Monte Cristo and D'Artagnan Romances
- George MacDonald's Flashman series
- Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe and Starbuck series
- CS Forester's Hornblower series
- Robert Graves' I, Claudius, Count Belisarius and others
- Mary Renault's Ancient Greece novels
- Arthur Conan Doyle's The White Company and others
- One Thousand and One Nights (aka Arabian Nights)
Outside that, I'd recommend Leon Tolstoy's War & Peace (if you don't read everything else of his afterward then there's something wrong with you) or anything by Jorge Luis Borges. And if you feel like a change of pace from the serious, give Wodehouse (the Jeeves stories first) a twirl. Yeah, just realized, I don't read much American fiction outside of fantasy.
Mifune said:
Going to have to agree. I'd understand if you wouldn't consider Stephenson to have the level of prose that Dick has, but Snow Crash remains an enjoyable read.
AndresON777
shooting blanks
Fanboydestroyer
Member
ralphwiggum said:"Pandora's Star" then "Judas Unchained" written by Peter F Hamilton.
The best written science fiction I have ever read. I can't believe I left it sitting on the bookcase for over a year.
I'm currently reading Pandoars' Star. Taking me a bit to read it though. But that's because I have to read two books for my history classes.
I would recommend reading "Childhood's End" out of all the books I've read in the past months this one really stands out.
I got a bunch of books I'm reading/ planning on reading they include
Pandora's Star - on page 195 I think.
Judas Unchained
Spin
Hyperion
The Fall of Hyperion
Endymion
Rise of Endymion
The Night Dawn Trilogy (1000 pages each)
The Dark Tower Series
Song of Fire and Ice series
The Stand (halfway through)
bigmit3737
Member
Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy
Harry Potter Series.
Harry Potter Series.
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